1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fan which can be selectively mounted to both a ceiling and a wall.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Prior art ceiling fans are designed for mounting exclusively on a ceiling, and wall fans on a wall. They are not interchangeable. In addition in some fans, the electric motor is mounted on a support rather than the impeller casing. The support is then secured to the casing by screws, and the support is adapted for mounting on the ceiling or wall. Since the casing is usually formed from a synthetic resin, it is generally not strong enough to support the screws and very often breaks resulting in the fan falling down.
Such a mounting system is described in Japanese Utility Model Publication Nos. 134442/77 and 139522/79. In the former publication, a fixing means is adapted to be fixed only to a wall and, in the latter, a fixing means is adapted to be fixed only to a ceiling. The fan supports, housing the electric motors, are then connected to the fixing means. Therefore, not only is there a high risk that the fan may separate from the support due to stresses imposed while operating the fan, these prior art fans cannot individually be selectively mounted to either a ceiling or a wall.
In addition, in order to forcefully blow air over a relatively large area, in some fans the main body is rotatably mounted on a base attached to a ceiling or wall, so that when the main body rotates, the fan delivers a current of air over an enlarged area. However, such fans require relatively large amounts of space within which they may rotate thereby precluding them from being mounted adjacent to an upper edge of a wall or in a corner of a ceiling.
Other fans incorporate a grill having members that alter the direction of air flow from an impeller. The grill rotates thus distributing air flow over a wide area. Such a fan is described in British Pat. No. 1,251,880. However, these types of fans are not suitable for mounting at the upper edge of a wall or in the corner of a ceiling since the direction of the air flow from the fan cannot be controlled within a predetermined range.